"Look, mademoiselle," he said finally, "All of zhis 'interrogating' is not leading us to anywhere."
She'd gotten cans of what looked like beans from somewhere, leaving him alone for quite a long time, and had humiliated him further by not giving him any until he'd asked, and then had managed to only let him eat by re-tying him into quite an uncomfortable position that still allowed him to feed himself.
He'd outright refused to be fed like an infant. This woman was a terrible jailer, but he had a grudging admiration for her caution/paranoia.
He sighed when she had only glanced at him before staring into the darkness again. This caution/paranoia made things difficult.
"Zhat woman, She has my...I guess you would call zhem my co-workers..." he admitted, and saw her eyes twitch towards him briefly.
She was listening.
"She has zhem do zhose 'tests'," he said, "And has sent me to find you. But I will not find you with zhe intent She assigned me." She was looking at him fully now, a slight furrow in-between her eyebrows as she gave him that awful 'analyzing' look. "She calls you a 'monstre'," he went on, "And I believe if you have zhe power to make Her say such, you could doubtless use it again to overcome Her."
The frown deepened slightly, and he persisted, "Simply take me into confidence, madam, we have a common goal, a common enemy!"
She stood up suddenly, and he fell back a bit as she shoved her gun roughly under his jaw, and he felt its prongs scrape against his collar.
Her eyes didn't leave his as she steadily, pointedly tapped the gun against the shackle a few times, before backing off, staring at his neck, and then him, slowly shaking her head.
He nodded, gasping a little, "Oui, I suppose zhis makes me a liability. But I cannot remove it."
His fall was fortuitous it seems, his hands were out of her sight, and the zip ties constricting him were in his fingers' reach.
He worked gently, hoping the click of plastic wouldn't betray him.
"I suppose zhis means we cannot reach an agreement?" he asked, and she glared at his collar. The serrated edges of his binds chafed and slightly skinned his sensitive fingertips, but it was worth it, oh it was worth it...
He sighed, lowering his head, feeling true pity, as well as feeling with triumph the circlet of plastic loosen enough that he could slip his arms free.
"Very well."
He shoved himself up, the Balisong that She had granted him now in easy access as he confronted the woman.
"I suppose I wasn't really on your side, anyway." he said, smiling grimly.
Her eyes widened.
Miss Pauling chewed on her lip, a habit she hadn't had since her internship days, as she looked at the footage.
She admired the woman for employing a practical use for the Engineer, and condemned the woman and herself for it as well.
The Administrator was not going to be pleased with this, as it seems the Engineer forgot the Company Loyalty sub-clauses...
As it was, it appears the Medic had gotten caught up in the excitement, too. Miss Pauling had to hurry before something drastic happened.
She now had a better idea of what her own purpose was.
The Aperture Science Corporate Industrialization Program. It showed the Aperture Corporation's old business contracts, policies, products, corporation partners and child companies, all deemed obsolete, but providing a logical blueprint and base for reintroducing Aperture Science to becoming an official Corporate Research and Development Center, independently utilized and self-sufficient. It was going to be the bloody shower curtains all over again, but global, independent of nationality or any other organization. And it was brilliant.
For starters there was a long history of open-ended contracts, her boys' and her own among them, disturbingly official, and many (in this case pretty much all) of the earlier ones terminated under the clauses of 'hazard-induced discontinuation', 'unavoidable lack of foresight', and 'disregard for Scientific policy'.
She noticed that the men's contracts were labeled 'Interminable'. That cow had a wretched sense of humor.
Still, it made sense. The Engineer would provide advanced, newer products for Aperture, while a few of the other boys tested them before deeming them suitable for public sale, which in the beginning would be military. Any military. After these were bought, the money would be used to diversify production, again utilizing the Engineer and the boys, for perhaps other products, and She would use Miss Pauling to manage production sales and predict the interests and investments needed, as well as dealing with finance, management, marketing, and relations both public, corporate, and political, and it would work. This would put Aperture Science in its various forms into the military, the stock market, the domestic public... Aperture Science would become a new global power...
But to what purpose? She had all She needed now to all intents and purposes: renewable test subjects, upgraded testing factors...
Unless... Miss Pauling typed again, searching, her abused lower lip nearly developing a scab in the process...
The woman was not under Respawn, so he couldn't kill her, and he did not have any of his usual arsenal, so surprise was out of the question.
This was an out and out confrontation, but he had the blade, what did she have?
Still, he wished he had his Dead Ringer, but that was not to be, as She had quickly assured him.
"No, you cannot have it." She'd told him bluntly, "You may use your little toy knife to hunt the monster. These are your orders."
"Remember, I am your Employer,
you have no Employer other than Me,
you will not use any other Technology than Mine, or the Aperture Science Conditioning Device will Condition you,
you will respect Me, or the Aperture Science Conditioning Device will Condition you,
you will remember the Aperture Science Conditioning Device around your neck that will electrocute or strangle you if you don't remember it,
you will honor the contract you consciously and willingly accepted, or the Aperture Science Conditioning Device will Condition you,
you will not kill the monster, or the Aperture Science Conditioning Device will Condition you for the rest of your pitiful days,
you will not fraternize with your previous Employer or Co-workers, or the Aperture Science Conditioning Device will Condition you,
you will not take the monster from Me, or the Aperture Science Conditioning Device will Condition you,
you will not lie to Me, or the Aperture Science Conditioning Device will Condition you, lying to anyone else is fine and encouraged,
and you will not want to betray Me, or the Aperture Science Conditioning Device will Condition you.
Good hunting, Bloodhound."
And with that She had promptly tossed him into the wretched bowels of demonic machinery.
"Really, woman," he growled, as they circled steadily around the fire, "What do you hope to gain? What do any of us hope to gain? You are Her enemy, oui, but She has done things zhat make Her stronger zhan you can hope to comprehend. I beg you to surrender, it would be best..."
Without pausing her circling, she jerked her thumb up towards the darkness of the manmade chasm, then drew her finger across her neck before holding up two fingers, slowly adding a third, smiling at him grimly. He couldn't help smiling back at the gesture, but shook his head with slight regret.
"My apologies, mademoiselle, but Her orders are not to be defied. She did not necessarily instruct, however, how much of you I bring back."
He came at her again, disregarding chivalry, circumstance, and hope. If the necessity for the survival of him and his team required the capture of this unfortunate woman, he would do what he could to accomplish the requirement. War did not give room for luxurious mercies.
It was quick, but brutal, and for him, surprising. He looked down as the prongs of her gun stuck neatly into his person around the Aperture logo.
"Good...move...cherie..." he choked, and her eyes tightened at the corners a bit before she pulled the trigger.
Florp.
It had been rare for him, to witness these 'portals'.
An upfront confrontation with one inside his chest cavity had been most painful and unwelcome.
He sucked in a breath as he Respawned in front of the woman's eyes, his chest throbbing briefly in pain. That had been quite a unique death.
"I really...must insist...you surrender..." he gasped, catching in mouthfuls of oxygen. Oh, yes, that was very threatening.
She was backing away, and he glared, "Yes, yes, yes, it is a clause She'd kept for which I am both grateful and cursing, it really doesn't make things any different but—where are you going? No, don't run, d-d-don't run, don't—merde!"